One Course At A Time is what drew Olivia Cotton ’26 to Cornell College from Colorado. The Charles J. & Evelyn R. Spletter Scholarship is what made it possible.
“The scholarship is the reason I’m here,” says Cotton, who has studied for a semester in Indonesia, competed on the Rams’ first women’s wrestling team, and discovered an appreciation for the liberal arts.
Charles Spletter ’41 and Evelyn Steinway Spletter ’43 set up the fund in 1994 to provide scholarships. It is one of hundreds of endowed scholarships that exist in perpetuity, providing the benefits of a Cornell education for generations.
Now a junior, Cotton says One Course turned out to be a great fit, allowing her to fully commit to every subject she studies. What she didn’t expect was to develop a love of the liberal arts. Her favorite classes have been Costume Design, Jazz Studio (a dance class), and Logic and Critical Thinking, a staple of the philosophy department. None are required for her self-designed major, international sales and marketing.
Cotton joined the women’s wrestling team in her first year and the first year for the program.
“It’s been amazing to see wrestling grow from the very beginning and to watch it have such an impact on recruiting and bringing women to the sport. It’s so nice to be a leader,” says Cotton, who also competes in track and field. “It’s a small school so the people on my teams are very close, almost like my family.”
A Gilman Scholarship allowed her to travel internationally for the first time, spending the fall 2024 semester in Indonesia with the School for International Training’s Art, Religion, and Social Change program. Over the four months, she says, she learned a new language, culture, and philosophical ideals.
None of this would be possible without the Spletters and their endowed scholarship.
“I am so appreciative to the donors who funded my scholarship,” she says. “I don’t know where I would be without Cornell, and I truly feel like I can go down my chosen path, not just for my career but for life.”